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“There’s no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one.” —Jill Churchill
With Mother’s Day approaching, we want to celebrate all Moms and Mother-like figures—anyone whose love, care, and guidance inspire us. These qualities aren’t limited to biological moms but can come from aunts, sisters, step-parents, or friends.
To highlight this, we asked our Team Members to share stories that celebrate the mother figures in their lives—those who make us feel seen, heard, cared for, celebrated, and inspired.
Angela Brooks
Development Coordinator - Goodwill of Greater Washington
“To my mother, integrity wasn't just a concept—it was a way of life. She taught me that our reputation is our greatest asset and, through kindness and honesty, showed me that true influence is earned by how we treat others.
Watching her navigate the world with grace taught me the power of empathy—that we can be firm in our principles without being unkind. I carry her belief in mutual respect into every connection I make, forever grateful for the moral compass she provided.”
Dr. Chelsea Kirk
Vice President, Education & Career Development - Goodwill of Greater Washington and Goodwill Excel Center
“My career has been shaped by all my education mentors - so many amazing women who have relentlessly pursued creating a space where all students can thrive, define their pathway to success, be met each day by caring adults, and truly feel seen and ultimately excel.
My first mentor I met during my first day of teaching 17 years ago. This fierce woman is Ms. Barbara O'Neal.
Ms. Barbara met me as a fresh eye, first-day teacher, and I still remember her first words to me to this day, “Come on in, in this classroom we don’t play, we ask how our scholars are doing every day, we make adjustments for them, and we do real work, and our scholars expect it.” She spoke the truth! Ms. Barbara was my co-teacher and truly taught me how to create a classroom of high expectations embedded in a culture of true care and compassion, with a space for everyone’s voice.
Together, we created magic and one of my favorite creations was our annual speech competition, which still exists in our school to this day. Together we had some unique ideas and she made me realize, the unique ideas are what our students need and it’s our job as educators to navigate the complex systems to figure out how to make a lot of these unique ideas a reality because they truly serve students!
Ms. Barbara passed away a few years ago and to this day her legacy lives on and I think about the lessons I learned from her each day.
I also want to celebrate my mom, Joy Kirk.
In my second year as a mom to my own kid, I can only be the mom I am because I had the most amazing mom and she set the bar. I only hope I can continue to follow in her footsteps and be that safe space, the constant source of support, the one who balances all with such grace, and ultimately the one who is the biggest cheerleader for her kid at all times. My mom’s name is Joy and she embodies that- I carry her name as my middle name and so does my kid and Joy 2 (me) and Joy 3 (my kid) will only ever try to live up to the bar Joy 1 (my mom) sets each day!”
Carolyn Becker
Director of Communications & Community Engagement - Goodwill of Greater Washington
"I would like to shout out my friends who are Mothers that never stop inspiring me to live a life full of purpose, passion, and community. I am honored to be called "Aunt" by their children and to leave a positive impact on their families' lives through endless, unconditional friendship. Shout-out to my friends who are pet Moms, Aunts, godmothers, and mentors, too!